List of Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball seasons

This is season-by-season results for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team.^[1]^[2]^[3]

Season-by-season results[edit]

Statistics overview
Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
Coach J.L. Arthur (Independent) (1914–1916)
1914–15	Western Kentucky State Normal School	5–1
1915–16	WKS	2–1
J.L.Arthur:		7–2 (.875)
No Team (World War I) (1916–1921)
Coach L.T. Smith (Independent) (1921–1922)
1921–22	Western Kentucky State Normal School and Teachers College	3–1
L.T.Smith:		3–1 (.750)
Coach E. A. Diddle (Independent) (1922–1926)
1922–23	WKS	12–2
1923–24	WKS	9–9
1924–25	WKS	8–6
1925–26	WKS	10–4
Coach E. A. Diddle (Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association) (1926–1948)
1926–27	WKS	12–7
1927–28	WKS	10–7
1928–29	WKS	8–10
1929–30	WKS	4–12
1930–31	WKS	11–3
1931–32	WKS	15–8		1st KIAC
1932–33	WKS	16–6		1st KIAC
1933–34	WKS	28–8		1st KIAC 1st SIAA
1934–35	WKS	24–3		1st KIAC
1935–36	WKS	26–4		1st KIAC	National Olympic Playoffs
1936–37	WKS	21–2		1st KIAC 1st SIAA
1937–38	WKS	30–3		1st KIAC 1st SIAA	NIBT (withdrew/forfeit)
1938–39	WKS	22–3		1st KIAC 1st SIAA
1939–40	WKS	24–6		1st KIAC 1st SIAA	NCAA Elite 8
1940–41	WKS	22–4		1st SIAA
1941–42	WKS	29–5		1st KIAC 1st SIAA	NIT Runner Up
1942–43	WKS	24–3		1st KIAC	NIT Quarterfinals
1943–44	WKS	13–9
1944–45	WKS	17–10
1945–46	WKS	15–19
1946–47	WKS	25–4		1st KIAC 1st SIAA
1947–48	Western Kentucky State College	28–2		1st KIAC NCAA Annual Team Champions^[4]	NIT 3rd place
Coach E. A. Diddle (Ohio Valley Conference) (1948–1964)
1948–49	WKSC	25–4	8–2	1st	NIT Quarterfinals
1949–50	WKSC	25–6	8–0	1st	NIT Quarterfinals
1950–51	WKSC	19–10	4–4	4th	NCBT 1st Round
1951–52	WKSC	26–5	11–1	1st	NIT Quarterfinals
1952–53	WKSC	25–6	8–2	2nd	NIT Quarterfinals
1953–54	WKSC	29–3	9–1	1st	NIT 4th Place
1954–55	WKSC	18–10	8–2	1st
1955–56	WKSC	16–12	7–3	T–1st
1956–57	WKSC	17–9	9–1	T–1st
1957–58	WKSC	14–11	5–5	3rd
1958–59	WKSC	16–10	8–4	2nd
1959–60	WKSC	21–7	10–2	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1960–61	WKSC	18–8	9–3	T–1st
1961–62	WKSC	17–10	11–1	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1962–63	WKSC	5–16	3–9	7th
1963–64	WKSC	5–16	3–11	8th
E. A. Diddle:		759–302 (.715)	121–51
Coach John Oldham (Ohio Valley Conference) (1964–1971)
1964–65	WKSC	18–9	10–4	2nd	NIT Quarterfinals
1965–66	Western Kentucky University	25–3	14–0	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1966–67	WKU	23–3	13–1	1st	NCAA round of 23
1967–68	WKU	18–7	9–5	3rd
1968–69	WKU	16–10	9–5	3rd
1969–70	WKU	22–3	14–0	1st	NCAA round of 25
1970–71	WKU	24–6	12–2	1st	NCAA Final Four *
John Oldham:		142–40 (.780)	81–17
Coach Jim Richards (Ohio Valley Conference) (1971–1978)
1971–72	WKU	15–11	9–5	T–1st
1972–73	WKU	10–16	6–8	6th	(NCAA Probation)
1973–74	WKU	15–10	8–6	4th	(NCAA Probation)
1974–75	WKU	16–8	11–3	2nd	(NCAA Probation)
1975–76	WKU	20–9	11–3	1st	NCAA round of 32
1976–77	WKU	10–16	6–8	T–5th
1977–78	WKU	16–14	9–5	T–3rd	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Jim Richards:		102–84 (.548)	60–38
Coach Gene Keady (Ohio Valley Conference) (1978–1980)
1978–79	WKU	17–11	7–5	T–2nd
1979–80	WKU	21–8	10–2	T–1st	NCAA round of 48
Gene Keady:		38–19 (.667)	17–7
Coach Clem Haskins (Ohio Valley Conference) (1980–1982)
1980–81	WKU	21–8	12–2	1st	NCAA round of 48
1981–82	WKU	19–10	13–3	T–1st	NIT 1st Round
Coach Clem Haskins (Sun Belt Conference) (1982–1986)
1982–83	WKU	12–16	4–10	7th
1983–84	WKU	12–17	5–9	6th
1984–85	WKU	14–14	5–9	7th
1985–86	WKU	23–8	10–4	2nd	NCAA round of 32
Clem Haskins:		101–73 (.580)	49–37
Coach Murray Arnold (Sun Belt Conference) (1986–1990)
1986–87	WKU	29–9	12–2	1st	NCAA round of 32
1987–88	WKU	15–13	6–8	6th
1988–89	WKU	14–15	4–10	7th
1989–90	WKU	13–17	7–7	T–3rd
Murray Arnold:		71–54 (.568)	29–27
Coach Ralph Willard (Sun Belt Conference) (1990–1994)
1990–91	WKU	14–14	8–6	T–3rd
1991–92	WKU	21–11	10–6	4th	NIT 1st Round
1992–93	WKU	26–6	14–4	2nd	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1993–94	WKU	20–11	14–4	1st	NCAA round of 64
Ralph Willard:		81–42 (.667)	46–20
Coach Matt Kilcullen (Sun Belt Conference) (1994–1998)
1994–95	WKU	27–4	17–1	1st	NCAA round of 32
1995–96	WKU	13–14	10–8	T–3rd
1996–97	WKU	12–15	9–9	T–6th
1997–98	WKU	7–16	4–10	–	–
Matt Kilcullen:		59–49 (.546)	42–30
Ron Brown and Al Seibert (named co-Head Coaches for last 6 games) (Sun Belt Conference) (1998–1998)
1997–98	WKU	3–3	2–2	T–8th
Ron Brown and Al Seibert:		3–3 (.500)	2–2
Coach Dennis Felton (Sun Belt Conference) (1998–2003)
1998–99	WKU	13–16	7–7	T–3rd
1999–00	WKU	11–18	8–8	5th
2000–01	WKU	24–7	14–2	1st (East)	NCAA round of 64
2001–02	WKU	28–4	13–1	1st (East)	NCAA round of 64
2002–03	WKU	24–9	12–2	1st (East)	NCAA round of 64
Dennis Felton:		100–54 (.649)	54–20 (.730)
Coach Darrin Horn (Sun Belt Conference) (2003–2008)
2003–04	WKU	15–13	8–6	5th
2004–05	WKU	22–9	9–5	2nd (East)	NIT 2nd Round
2005–06	WKU	23–8	12–2	1st (East)	NIT 1st Round
2006–07	WKU	22–11	12–6	2nd (East)
2007–08	WKU	29–7	16–2	T–1st (East)	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Darrin Horn:		111–48 (.698)	57–21 (.731)
Coach Ken McDonald (Sun Belt Conference) (2008–2012)
2008–09	WKU	25–8	15–3	1st (East)	NCAA round of 32
2009–10	WKU	21–13	12–6	3rd (East)
2010–11	WKU	16–16	8–8	3rd (East)
2011–12	WKU	5–11	1–2	–	–
Ken McDonald:		67–48 (.583)	36–19 (.655)
Ray Harper (named interim Head Coach after 16 games) (Sun Belt Conference) (2012–2014)
2011–12	WKU	11–8	10–7	T–3rd (East)	NCAA round of 64
2012–13	WKU	20–16	10–10	4th (East)	NCAA round of 64
2013–14	WKU	21–11	12–6	2nd
Coach Ray Harper (Conference USA) (2014–2016)
2014–15	WKU	20–12	12–6	4th
2015–16	WKU	18–16	8–10	8th
Ray Harper:		90–63 (.588)	42–34 (.553)
Coach Rick Stansbury (Conference USA) (2016–2023)
2016–17	WKU	15–17	9–9	8th
2017–18	WKU	27–11	14–4	3rd	NIT Final Four
2018–19	WKU	20–14	11–7	2nd
2019–20	WKU	20–10	13–5	2nd	(Tournaments cancelled)
2020–21	WKU	21–8	11-3	1st (East)	NIT Quarterfinals
2021–22	WKU	19–13	11-7	2nd (East)
2022–23	WKU	17–16	8-12	6th	Stansbury missed 9 games with health issues. Phil Cunningham coached the team during those games winning 3 and losing 6.^[5]
Rick Stansbury:		136–83 (.621)	74–41 (.643)
Coach Steve Lutz (Conference USA) (2023–2024)
2023–24	WKU	22–12	8–8	3rd	NCAA round of 64
Steve Lutz:		22–12 (.647)	8–8 (.500)
Coach Hank Plona (Conference USA) (2024–present)
2024–25	WKU	0–0	0–0
Hank Plona:		0–0 (–)	0–0 (–)
Total:		1895–982 (.659)
National champion Postseason invitational champion Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion Conference tournament champion

^[6]^[7] ^[8] BOLD indicates lead the NCAA in victories.^[9]
NCAA – National Collegiate Athletic Association
NIT – National Invitation Tournament
NCBT – National Campus Basketball Tournament^[10]
NIBT – National Intercollegiate Basketball tournament^[11]
* 1971 NCAA appearance, including 4 tournament wins, vacated by the NCAA

Rankings[edit]

The Associated Press (AP) began publishing a national college basketball poll during the 1948–49 season. The Coaches Poll began during the 1950–51 season. The highest that Western Kentucky has been ranked in the AP poll is number 3 (1949, 1954, and 1967); the highest they have been ranked in the Coaches poll is 4th in 1954. The AP poll was a top 20 poll from 1949 to 1960; a top 10 poll from 1961 to 1968; a top 20 from 1969 to 1989; and a top 25 poll since 1990. The Coaches poll started as a top 20 poll in 1950 and remained such until 1991 when it became a top 25 poll. Below is the team's highest ranking and final season ranking for each poll (it does not include times when Western Kentucky was listed as “receiving votes”).

Season	AP High	AP Final	Coach High	Coach Final
1948-49	3	5	N/A	N/A
1949-50	7	8	N/A	N/A
1950-51			13
1951-52	11		16	16
1952-53	8	17	11	11
1953-54	3	8	4	6
1954-55	20
1956-57	12		10
1957-58	16
1959-60	18
1960-61			19
1965-66	10	10	14
1966-67	3	6	5	7
1967-68			16
1968-69	15		14
1969-70	12	18	15	17
1970-71	5	7	5	7
1985-86	19
1986-87	8		10
1992-93	20	20	16	16
1993-94	25
1994-95	21	21
2001-02	17	19	18
2002-03	19		23
2007-08			22	22

References[edit]

^ "WKU Hilltopper Basketball Media Guides". Western Kentucky University Athletic Department. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
^ Ruby, Earl (1979). Red Towel Territory : A History of Athletics at Western Kentucky University. American National Bank and Trust Co.
^ Lowell H. Harrison (1987). Western Kentucky University. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0813116204.
^ 2011 NCAA Division I Basketball Records, retrieved 30 April 2020
^ Tops go cold in season-ending loss to FAU at bgdailynews.com
^ http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/m_basketball_RB/2012/DI.pdf ^{[bare URL PDF]}
^ "College Basketball - Standings - Rivals.com". Rivals.yahoo.com. April 20, 2011. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
^ https://admin.xosn.com/fls/5400//Misc%20Files/Copy%20of%202011-12%20WKU%20Men%27s%20Basketball%20Media%20Information%20Guide.pdf?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID= 5400
^ E. A. Diddle CBB Records, Sports Reference, retrieved October 6, 2018
^ National Campus Basketball Tournament, retrieved May 20, 2020
^ NAIA Through the Decades, NAIA.org retrieved May 20, 2020

[1] "WKU Hilltopper Basketball Media Guides". Western Kentucky University Athletic Department. Retrieved April 30, 2021.

[Ruby-2] Ruby, Earl (1979). Red Towel Territory : A History of Athletics at Western Kentucky University. American National Bank and Trust Co.

[Harrison-3] Lowell H. Harrison (1987). Western Kentucky University. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0813116204.

[4] 2011 NCAA Division I Basketball Records, retrieved 30 April 2020

[5] Tops go cold in season-ending loss to FAU at bgdailynews.com

[6] ttp://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/m_basketball_RB/2012/DI.pdf ^{[bare URL PDF]}

[7] "College Basketball - Standings - Rivals.com". Rivals.yahoo.com. April 20, 2011. Retrieved August 12, 2012.

[8] ttps://admin.xosn.com/fls/5400//Misc%20Files/Copy%20of%202011-12%20WKU%20Men%27s%20Basketball%20Media%20Information%20Guide.pdf?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID= 5400

[9] E. A. Diddle CBB Records, Sports Reference, retrieved October 6, 2018

[10] National Campus Basketball Tournament, retrieved May 20, 2020

[11] NAIA Through the Decades, NAIA.org retrieved May 20, 2020

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v t e Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball
Venues	Red Barn (1920–1931) Health & Physical Education Building (1931–1963) E. A. Diddle Arena (1963–present)
Culture & lore	Big Red
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1914–15 1915–16 1916–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
NCAA Final Four appearance in italics